MBB Game 5: at UCLA (Thu 11/21, 11 pm ET)

[Wags]

Liberty wasn't a bad loss. They're one of the three undefeated teams. Today is the second consecutive day that LSU plays a game with an undefeated team. After beating Oklahoma in Football yesterday, they're favored hosting Liberty, whose schedule is so weak that they are in the Top 50 in the Sagarin or KenPom. They're the best team in the Atlantic Sun by 174 spots in the NET, which is almost half the amount of Division I teams, so if they win today they have a chance at being 34-0 (32-0 vs. Division I) on Selection Sunday. They're 43-7 (38-7 vs. Division I) in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 combined with an NCAA Tournament win as a 12 seed over 5 seed Mississippi State and a 9-point loss to 4 seed Virginia Tech. Belmont had 6 losses last season, won a First Four game, and lost to Maryland by 2 in the Round of 64. The loss to Monmouth four seasons ago wasn't bad either is they went 28-8 including neutral site wins over Notre Dame (24-12 and reached the Elite Eight) and USC (21-13 with a Round of 64 loss that was called the Second Round then). Monmouth lost the MAAC Final to Iona 79-76 and won one NIT game. CSF is the only bad team of the five you named. Before beating UCLA, CSF's wins were over Wyoming (4-9), Cal State Stanislaus (non-Division I), and Southeast Missouri State (2-9). UCLA fell to 183rd in the NET, which is in the bottom half, and they have the worst NET in the Pac-12. It would be something if they didn't reach double-digit wins. What percent of college and high school basketball players who were never in the LA area know much about UCLA under John Wooden? You can't expect recruits to know as much about team's history as Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) members know about Hall of Fame candidates.

Well aware of what Liberty did last year (which was when they beat UCLA) and what the other teams I mentioned have done. Regardless, they (like Hofstra) were all underdogs and were all expected to lose at UCLA when they beat them. Point is, forget the name on the jersey and the history. Though we consider it a great win for Hofstra, it's nothing new for UCLA, especially over the past two years. it can only be judged at the end of the season, when St. Bonaventure might prove to have been a far tougher game on Hofstra's schedule than playing at UCLA.

[Polito]

UCLA is def not what they used to be, and have gone through quite a bit of transition - still working their way back to their historical power.

Couple their downtime with facing some fully capable mids (Liberty, Belmont, Monmouth, HU, etc. are no mid slouches, all have the proven ability to knock off a name), and it's been a rough go for them lately.

But I'll take that road W all day long! And be proud of it too

[Wags]

But I'll take that road W all day long! And be proud of it too

Can agree on this, for sure.

[Wags]

UCLA just finished beating Cal, 50-40, at home.

Who'd have thought Hofstra would score 48 more than Cal would at UCLA this year?

[EvanJ]

I wonder how many seasons had any mid-major score 48 more points at a major than another major scored at that major. We scored 2 fewer than Cal and UCLA combined!

Cal is 148th in the NET, UCLA is 149th, and those are third-worst and fourth-worst among the 75 teams in the top conferences above Boston College in 162nd and Nebraska in 168th.